BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1081
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 1081 (Ammiano)
As Amended May 16, 2011
Majority vote
PUBLIC SAFETY 5-2 APPROPRIATIONS 11-5
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Ayes:|Ammiano, Cedillo, Hill, |Ayes:|Fuentes, Blumenfield, |
| |Mitchell, Skinner | |Bradford, Charles |
| | | |Calderon, Campos, Davis, |
| | | |Gatto, Hill, Lara, |
| | | |Mitchell, Solorio |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Knight, Hagman |Nays:|Harkey, Donnelly, |
| | | |Nielsen, Smyth, Wagner |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY : Requires Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to
modify the current Secure Communities program (S-Comm) agreement
with California to allow counties to participate in the program
only upon the passage of an ordinance or resolution authorizing
participation. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires the modified agreement to include the following
exemptions and limitations to S-Comm:
a) Protections for domestic violence victims; and,
b) Protections for juveniles.
2)Requires a local government that opts to participate in the
program to prepare a plan to monitor and guard against racial
profiling, discouraging reporting by domestic violence
victims, and harming community policing overall. This plan
shall be deemed a public record for purposes of the Public
Records Act.
3)Limits sharing of fingerprints under S-Comm to those of
individuals convicted, rather than merely accused, of a crime.
4)Prohibits obtaining fingerprints for the purposes of S-Comm
program through the use of checkpoints, and the stopping of
AB 1081
Page 2
individuals solely based on perceived immigration status.
5)Requires that ICE establish a complaint mechanism that allows
for expedited review of claims by those put into immigration
removal proceedings prior to conviction as a result of S-Comm.
6)Requires that ICE make available to the public on its Internet
Web site quarterly statistics on S-Comm in California,
including information on the following:
a) Number of searches to Automated Biometric Identification
System (IDENT);
b) Number of matches to IDENT;
c) Number of detainers issued by ICE based on Level 1,
Level 2, and Level 3 offense categories;
d) Number of detainers issued by ICE where charges are
never filed, are later dismissed or where there is
ultimately no conviction;
e) Number of Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 arrestees who
are transferred into ICE custody after being subjected to
an ICE detainer, where charges are never filed, are later
dismissed or where there is ultimately no conviction;
f) Number of identified detainees prosecuted criminally in
federal court;
g) Number of identified detainees removed from the United
States;
h) Number of identified United States (U.S.) citizens and
persons with lawful status identified through S-Comm; and,
i) Nationality, age, and gender of individuals identified
and removed through S-Comm.
7)States that ICE must terminate the memorandum of agreement
(MOA) if these requirements cannot be fulfilled.
EXISTING LAW : Requires, under S-Comm, developed by the U.S.
AB 1081
Page 3
Department of Homeland Security and ICE in March 2008, that
participating local law enforcement agencies submit arrestees'
fingerprints to ICE and Federal Bureau of Investigation
databases, the U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator
Technology Program (US-VISIT), and IDENT, and allows these
federal agencies to access the arrestee's documented criminal
and immigration history. According to ICE statements and
materials, S-Comm is intended to target dangerous criminals and
those who pose threats to public safety.
S-Comm is intended to identify and prioritize for removal
undocumented immigrants based on the following classifications:
1)Level 1 - Individuals who have been convicted of major drug
offenses and violent crimes such as murder, manslaughter,
rape, robbery or kidnapping.
2)Level 2 - Individuals who have been convicted of minor drug
and property offenses such as burglary, larceny, fraud, and
money laundering.
3)Level 3 - Individuals who have been convicted of other
offenses.
On April 10, 2009, the California's Department of Justice (DOJ)
entered into a MOA with ICE to implement S-Comm in California
counties.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, minor one-time and ongoing General Fund costs to DOJ
to renegotiate the MOA with Homeland Security and to work as an
intermediary with Homeland Security for counties who opt out of
S-Comm, to the extent DOJ serves as a conduit for criminal
information.
The terms of this bill, however, do not require DOJ to alter the
substance of criminal information currently provided to the
federal government, nor the form in which the information is
delivered.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "S-Comm is an extremely
problematic program that enlists local law enforcement to engage
in civil immigration enforcement through the sharing of
biometric data at the point of arrest. The program
AB 1081
Page 4
automatically leads to investigation of the immigration
background of every individual, citizen or non-citizen, at the
point of arrest by electronically crosschecking fingerprints
through an immigration database allowing ICE officials to detain
and deport undocumented individuals - without the basic right to
a day in court.
"While the United States' ICE stated mission for the
controversial S-Comm program is to target serious offenses, the
program casts far too wide a net. ICE's own data shows over 70%
of people deported under S-Comm had no convictions or were
accused only of minor offenses. Unfortunately, this program is
unfairly impacting innocent people, victims of crime, and even
survivors of domestic violence who have called the police for
help.
"This program is eroding trust between immigrant communities and
local law enforcement because immigrant residents who are
victims or witnesses to a crime now fear cooperating with police
since any contact can now result in separation from their
families and deportation. As a result, years of community
policing initiatives are ruined as entire communities lose trust
in law enforcement and stop reporting crimes or seeking help.
S-Comm makes us all less safe and sends the state in the wrong
direction. The program is exactly what ICE said it is not
supposed to be, a simple tool for mass, indiscriminate
non-criminal immigration enforcement.
"In addition to the public safety concerns, S-Comm has also
failed to provide accountability and transparency. ICE has
given contradictory and inconsistent answers to questions from
Congress, media, and local officials regarding the participation
of unwilling jurisdictions. This bill brings S-Comm out of its
shadowy misinformation and creates clear reporting requirements
that let us know how it's operating and who is impacted.
"Forcing this problematic program on localities against their
will creates an undue burden and jeopardizes local community
policing strategies. This bill enables municipalities concerned
with the inherent problems of S-Comm to choose not to
participate while those who opt-in will have the option to do so
with safeguards to protect our communities from the program's
pitfalls. This bill adds safeguards to protect Californians and
prevent civil rights violations. If localities want to
AB 1081
Page 5
participate, this bill will require a plan to prevent racial
profiling and keep children, crime victims, or survivors of
domestic violence from being wrongfully targeted."
Please see the policy committee for a full discussion of this
bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Stella Choe / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744
FN: 0000753